Family member with Type 2 Diabetes-what to cook?

My dh was diagnosed this week with Type 2 diabetes. His doctor put him on medication (metformin, I think) to lower his blood sugar. The doctor wants dh to exercise more and change his diet. I asked what the doctor meant by "change your diet". I answer I got was to avoid sugar, potatoes and carbs.

If dh drinks soda it's diet Coke. He doesn't drink much juice, usually crystal light or water. He also doesn't eat a lot of breads. A girlfriend of mine whose dh has Type 1 diabetes tells me that yes, he can have things like pizza, pasta, moderate amounts of sugar, etc. but the key is to balance your diet and moderation on sugars and carbs. Girlfriend informs me that if we have pizza one night a week for dinner, dh will be fine as long as he limits himself to 2 slices. She also says spaghetti once a week for dinner will be fine, too. I make french toast for breakfast MAYBE once a month-girlfriend says this is ok, too, but dh needs to limit his portion. When I make pancakes for breakfast, it's just me and the kids at home, so no problems there.

My main problem is dinners. Most of the time I choose a meat, a vegetable, and a side for dinner. Dh's doctor says meats and vegetables are ok. We do have baked french fries, baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, or scalloped potatoes as sides often. Would sweet potato fries be an acceptable substitute? (Provided dh would eat them, lol). I was thinking to maybe cook as I usually do, but make dh a small portion of steamed carrots or broccoli so he doesn't have to eat the potatoes.

We don't do a lot of sugary stuff. Dessert, when we do have it, is usually ice cream without syrup or toppings. This week my mother made us a pan of brownies with frosting and I took it to work so dh wouldn't have to look at it and be tempted.

Any other ideas for what to serve? I've never had to deal with this before and I'm open to any and all suggestions.

Comments (15)

When my DH was first diagnosed, I tried to cook 2 veggies with every meal. We eat a lot of potaotes. I just found healthier ways to cook them that he didn't like as much, so he didn't eat as much. We have found that for some, instant potatoes do not affect blood sugar as much as real potatoes. That may be an option.

I'm sorry to hear this...but I have some suggestions. Beans and legumes are a great choice as tasty side dishes. Also, different salads. Check out my food blog below, as I have a lot of healthy and delicious recipes that are sensible and satisfying choices for people with diet restrictions and limitations. I also have sweet stuff on there...ignore those (-:

I am basing my response on my experience with gestational diabetes, which I was able to manage through diet and exercise. I know it's not exactly the same, but the diet is similar. You should definitely speak to a nutritionist before taking anyone's advice, even other people with the same condition, since all people are different.

With that being said, this is what I did. Yes, I was able to eat pretty much anything as long as I controlled the portion size. However, it is basically torture to eat just one piece of pizza or two oreos, so I just didn't eat them at all. It is much easier to restrain yourself if it isn't there to tempt you. After you've had your one slice of pizza, you can't have any more carbs but you're still hungry. And it really, really sucks seeing the rest of your family having things that you can't have, too! I would definitely advise that in support of your dh, you should make this a whole family lifestyle change. It will make it easier on him and will be healthier for the whole family. (My dh ended up losing about 15 lbs, lol!) You should make a switch to brown instead of white (rice, bread, pasta). Stick to one serving size portion of any carb or high starch veg like beans or corn. Have two serving size portions of a low starch veg, like broccoli or asparagus. Have your meats grilled or broiled, not fried. My nutritionist told me not to eat anything with table sugar or drink any juice (although fruit is very good for a snack--1 piece of fruit or 1 cup of grapes, berries, or chopped melon). I stayed away from anything with pasta or a high carb item as a main component, since it would be easy to overdo it without meaning to (spaghetti, etc.). When I wanted potatoes, I would boil two small read potatoes and add a little butter and sour cream. I rarely had fries because I could only have a very small amount with no ketchup. Be very careful with sauces, condiments, and dressings. Oil and vinegar is best for a salad. Also, for ice cream, I can't remember the brand, but there is a low carb vanilla ice cream that tastes just like the regular stuff. It says low carb or something like that in big letters on the carton. I was able to eat a whole bowl of that stuff, compared to just a few spoonfuls of the regular.

A lot of this was trial and error for me. Some foods are okay for one person but will make someone else's sugars sky rocket. If this happens, he should drink a lot of water and exercise; that will make it come down faster. Good luck, I hope that helped a little. It's really not that bad once you get used to it.

I wood first track his "regular" diet for at least three days using one of the many food/diet apps/websites there are out there.

A lot of the time we tend to underestimate our calories and fat intake. We also overestimate our veggies and "healthy stuff" intake. I tracked my diet for a week and I consistently reached my max calories by mid-late afternoon EVERY day. Sigh.

DH and I did the Mediterranean diet and I did weight watchers at one point too. I also did a Taoist diet which said to stay away from processed food altogether. The med diet stated decreased red meat, increased fish, decreased starches, increased veggies and healthy fats. So for dinner it might be steelhead trout, side of avocado, side of steamed broccoli and side of sautéed squash in olive oil with some onion and garlic. That diet taught us to step away from the red meat and that flavor is everything...veggies can be delish without drowning them in heavy creams, butter or cheese. Weight watchers was really good about teaching me about portion sizes.
We also don't use any salt in our cooking. And we stopped using white potatoes altogether. Sweet potatoes are amazing...delish without even trying. I've made it all with sweet potatoes...baked, hash, boiled...I season it usually with rosemary, black pepper. Sage also compliments it well. We use whole wheat for everything (pasta, bread, rice, breading).

I would highly recommend a nutritionist or diabetic education course. Diabetes is a really interesting disease process and each food choice made can be good or bad. DM type 2 is also potentially reversible if diet and lifestyle change occur.
And like a pp stated, make it a family thing...everyone can benefit from increased physical activity and improved diet.

I had gestational diabetes, too. Talk to a nutritionist about diet and the allotted amount of carbs (per meal) your hubby should have. He should also track his glucose levels after meals to monitor his sugar levels. After I delivered baby, several months later, I went on Metformin and got severe gas and felt nauseous. I went off that medication because, technically I am not diabetic right now and it made me feel cruddy. Good luck.

Your DH needs to talk to a specialist and get specific guidelines. It is not as simple (or as hard) as the dr made it sound. Sugar should ideally be avoided, but also carbs should be spread within the day. Your DH needs to learn how to balance fruit, vegetables, bread, rice, potatoes etc throughout the day, to learn how long he can go between meals, what types of things each meal or snack shoudl include, what is the portion for every thing and so on. It is not that hard, or limitating, but there are rules you must both learn how to follow. Get him an appointment with a nutritionist, and if you are doign most of the cooking, make sure you attend to and have all your questions answered.

I have had gestational diabetes twice, and now I have type II. I have been on the Plate Diet since my type II diagnosis, which was introduced to me by a nutritionist. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, do yourself and your DH a favor: make an appointment with a nutritionist and go with your DH to the appointment. Your doctor can refer you to a nutritionist based on his diagnosis.

The Plate Diet (aka the Idaho Plate Diet) can be found on the internet, if you would like to research. I was diagnosed in September, 2009. Since then, I have lost 10 pounds and have kept it off since. BTW, I was only about 10 pounds overweight (thankfully), and I have been able to manage my blood sugar with diet and exercise.

The main thing to remember with DH's diet is that carbs are necessary. Without carbs in his diet, his blood sugar can drop too low. It is not difficult to balance. He does need to make smart choices. He can have potatoes with dinner, but the portion needs to be reasonable and combined with protein. He can have a piece of cake, as long as he has made accommodations in his other carb choices.

The best advice I can give you is to attend that appointment with your DH so that you have a clear plan for his meals. My DH went with me, and we both know what my meals should be.

Your GF would be right...a SERVING of pasta or potato or carb is just fine on a diabetic diet. The problem comes when a person eats their normal portions and it turns out that that portion of pasta was really 4.

It is all a balance. I grew up on a diabetic diet and I am having a really really hard time getting carbs back into my diet. I just do not think of them. My mom had type 1 and had to really limit her carbs. So I did not grow up eating pasta, potatoes, or bread.